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Eligibility

Entry requirements for the Operational Research MSc programmes.

To be successful an OR analyst needs to enjoy problem solving and be keen to see the solutions implemented in practice. This requires communication and interpersonal skills, as well as mathematical skills.

These skills will be developed during the course, but a prerequisite is to have a good first degree (e.g. a UK upper second) or equivalent, in a numerate discipline, such as mathematics, statistics, computer science, engineering, physical or biological sciences, economics or business studies. The current OR MSc students section gives a breakdown of their first degree qualifications.

More specifically, success on the OR MSc depends on whether you start with the necessary skills in the following three areas.

Mathematics Skills

See the Maths Skills section for information about the type and level of mathematics involved in the course.

English Skills

If your first language is not English or your first degree is not from a British University, you will need to provide evidence of your ability at spoken and written English.

Computing Skills

It is important for an OR practitioner to be able to use computers fluently to model new problems. This may involve using or adapting existing packages or using programming languages to develop new applications, and it is important to be interested in this and see it as a creative activity. There are no formal entry requirements for computing skills, but if you have limited experience of computing we advise you to do some preliminary work before joining the course.

The University of Edinburgh

The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number
SC005336, VAT Registration Number GB 592 9507 00, and is acknowledged by the UK authorities as a
“Recognised body” which has been
granted degree awarding powers.